Ramesses II’s mummy was issued a passport after 3 thousand years of his death
His successors and later Egyptians called him the “Great Ancestor.”
Pharaoh Ramesses II had to issue an Egyptian passport for passage to France for nearly three millennia after his death.
Ramesses II, also known as Ramesses the Great, was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt.
Ramesses II is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the New Kingdom. His successors and later Egyptians called him the "Great Ancestor". On his death, he was buried in a tomb in the Valley of the Kings; his body was later moved to a royal cache where it was discovered in 1881 and is now on display in the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
In 1975, Maurice Bucaille, a French doctor studying his remains said that the mummy was threatened by fungus and needed urgent treatment to prevent total decay. French laws dictated that entry and transportation through the country required a valid passport. To comply with local laws, the Egyptian government issued a passport to the Pharaoh.
So In 1976, Ramesses II's remains were issued an Egyptian passport (nearly 3 thousand years after his death) so that he could be transported to Paris for an irradiated treatment to prevent a fungoid growth.
The New York Times reported on September 27, 1976, that "The mummy was greeted by the Secretary of State for Universities, Alice Saunter‐Seite, and an army detachment. Ramesses II, who ruled Egypt for 67 years, received special treatment at Le Bourget Airport."
